Friends and Foes

People enter the Memorial Church at Stanford University for the private memorial service of Steve Jobs, Sunday, Oct. 16, 2011, in Stanford, Calif. Some of Silicon Valley’s top tech leaders are expected to attend the service for Jobs, who co-founded Apple Inc. and was the mastermind behind popular gadgets such as the iPhone and the iPad.

Today’s fresh development in a series of high-profile patent battles between Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc. seems to prove that there is a line between public and private matters, after all.

On Monday morning, Samsung Electronics said it was seeking a ban on the sale of Apple’s new iPhone 4S in Japan and Australia, intensifying the legal clash between the two IT giants.

The news came even as South Korean media were expressing high hope that the attendance of Jay Y. Lee, president of Samsung Electronics, at Steve Jobs’s memorial service Sunday evening could be a sign that the two companies are trying to resolve their differences behind the scenes.

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Before boarding a private jet at Kimpo Airport—the service was in California, at Stanford University’s Memorial Church—Mr. Lee talked with a group of local reporters about his somewhat complicated relations with Mr. Jobs, whom he called a “great competitor” but at the same time “a good friend.”

“As is widely known, he was a bit hot-tempered, and the kind of person who, once he believed in something, pushed hard to the end,” said Mr. Lee, offering a rare peek at what life is like as the heir apparent of Samsung Group. “He would call me day and night to complain for 30 minutes or one hour.”

Mr. Lee said the cumulative effect of such interactions was not what one might expect: The two executives became fond of one another. “He was a picky customer but later we became friends,” he said.

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Jay Y. Lee

But when the subject turned to the future of Samsung and Apple—in particular, when asked what he expected to discuss with new Apple CEO Tim Cook—Mr. Lee grew vague: “I am not sure what we are going to talk about.”

“Samsung and Apple should be a partner in this industry, and should compete with each other fairly but fiercely,” he added. “It is also our important customer so we should get along with them well.”

Charging one another with patent infringement, the companies are fighting a sprawling battle—more than 30 lawsuits in 10 countries. Two decisions went Apple’s way last week: On Thursday a court in Sydney issued a temporary injunction to block the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia, and on Friday a Dutch court rejected Samsung’s call for a ban on Apple products in the Netherlands.